Polish supermarket chain Biedronka has announced that Jerónimo Martins Polska SA, who owns the supermarket chain, has ranked second in the '500 List' prepared by Polish daily newspaper, Rzeczpospolita. The retailer added that this is the fifth time in a row that the company has come runner-up on the list, which features the largest companies in Poland, ranked according to the amount of revenue recorded the previous year (2017). Last year, Jerónimo Martins Polska invested over PLN1.5bln in Poland and paid over PLN460mln in income tax (CIT-8) for 2017.Source: esmmagazine.com
Croatia: New Agrokor owners to vote on settlement on July 4
The creditors of Croatia’s indebted food producer and retailer Agrokor will vote on a settlement deal on July 4, a local commercial court said. For the deal to be approved, two-thirds of creditors must vote for it, which is widely expected. The legal deadline for the vote, aimed at avoiding Agrokor’s bankruptcy, is July 10. Earlier this week the representatives of major creditors in the so-called interim creditors’ council have accepted the settlement contract, which includes a debt-to-equity swap and some loan write-offs. It was a key step before the court could act on defining a date for the vote.Source: reuters.com
France: Carrefour announces new Carrefour City store in Paris with organic focus
Carrefour France has announced that a new Carrefour City store opened in Paris, dedicated to well-being and everything that's ‘good and beautiful’. The store opened on 21 June at BeauPassage with almost 6,000 DKUs and more than 20 employees. The new store features a wide selection of organic, gluten-free and vegan products, in line with the group's aim of becoming one of the largest companies engaged in making organic products widely available by 2022.Source: esmmagazine.com
Mega Image opens first shop in western Romania city
Supermarket chain Mega Image has opened its first supermarket in the Romanian city of Timisoara in western Romania. The store covers 900 sqm and has 6 checkout desks. The retailer has reached 620 stores in Romania, the majority of them in the capital of Bucharest, as well as in Cluj – Napoca, Constanta, Ploiesti, Brasov Targoviste and Timisoara, among others. It runs shops under the brands Mega Image, Shop & Go, and Gusturi Romanesti (translated as Romanian Tastes). Mega Image is part of Ahold Delhaize Group.Source: romania-insider.com
Takeaway.com acquires Foodarena in Switzerland
Online food delivery service Takeaway.com has acquired Foodarena, a similar company from Switzerland, from its main competitor Delivery Hero. The acquisition doesn’t mean Takeaway.com is entering a new market, as the Dutch company was already operating a food delivery service in Switzerland. Takeaway.com announced the acquisition news, not disclosing any financial details of the deal. The company says this acquisition will further strengthen its presence and increase its restaurant offering throughout Switzerland.Source: ecommercenews.eu
UK: Tesco ranked top supermarket for food waste prevention
Tesco has come out on top in a list of the UK’s best and worst supermarkets at preventing food waste. The ‘Food Waste Scorecard’ has been produced by Feedback, a UK charity campaigning for a better food system. It ranks the top 10 supermarkets in the UK by their actions to tackle the food waste problem and found that while Tesco is striding out ahead of the pack, Waitrose is the worst-performing chain - but none of them are adequately addressing how the standard supermarket business model inherently leads to waste.Source: resource.co
India: Payments startup Simpl signs up Bigbasket, Meru & 3 other merchants to its network
Payments platform Simpl has announced tie-ups with five new merchants including Bigbasket, Meru, NoBroker, Fynd and Guarented. “Removal of OTP and password hiccups will add a great deal to user experience. Cab facility is used twice a day by considerable number of users; payment failures and distractions in the cab booking process will reduce significantly. Meru has enabled Simpl payments across every kind of ride that can be taken on its Android and iOS platforms.” said Meru CEO Nilesh Sangoi.Source: tech.economictimes.indiatimes.com
US: Fresh Thyme Farmers Market enters Pittsburgh with 2 locations
Fresh Thyme Farmers Market made its market debut in Pennsylvania earlier this month when it opened its first two stores in suburban Pittsburgh in Bridgeville and Pleasant Hills. The Downers Grove, Illinois-based specialty retailer also confirmed a third Western Pennsylvania location is on the way for 2019 in the fast-growing northern suburb of Cranberry Township. “We strategically place our stores in areas where we know the consumers are on a health journey, no matter what that may be,” a Fresh Thyme spokeswoman told WGB in an email. “We look forward to becoming ingrained in the Pittsburgh area and serving local residents. From stocking local products, hiring residents and partnering with nonprofits in the area, we are fully committed to serving the Pittsburgh community as part of our growing family, including our expansion into Cranberry in 2019,” where a 31,296-square-foot store will open in the former H.H. Gregg appliance store in Cranberry Commons, which is co-anchored by a conventional Target and Lowe’s home improvement store.
Source: winsightgrocerybusiness.com
Fresh Thyme Farmers Market made its market debut in Pennsylvania earlier this month when it opened its first two stores in suburban Pittsburgh in Bridgeville and Pleasant Hills. The Downers Grove, Illinois-based specialty retailer also confirmed a third Western Pennsylvania location is on the way for 2019 in the fast-growing northern suburb of Cranberry Township. “We strategically place our stores in areas where we know the consumers are on a health journey, no matter what that may be,” a Fresh Thyme spokeswoman told WGB in an email. “We look forward to becoming ingrained in the Pittsburgh area and serving local residents. From stocking local products, hiring residents and partnering with nonprofits in the area, we are fully committed to serving the Pittsburgh community as part of our growing family, including our expansion into Cranberry in 2019,” where a 31,296-square-foot store will open in the former H.H. Gregg appliance store in Cranberry Commons, which is co-anchored by a conventional Target and Lowe’s home improvement store.Source: winsightgrocerybusiness.com
US: SpartanNash CFO: Decline of independents “overblown”
While players have come and gone amid the disruption in the retail grocery sector, SpartanNash Co. Chief Financial Officer Mark Shamber sees independent supermarkets holding their own. “I think the expected death of the independents has been way overblown,” Shamber said at the Jefferies Global Consumer Conference in Nantucket, Massachusetts.Source: supermarketnews.com
CAN: Sobeys begins rollout of environmentally responsible, Atlantic-produced bag
Sobeys began the Nova Scotia rollout of a new, free, environmentally responsible, single-use plastic bag including in stores in Pictou County. It’s the next step in introducing a bag that uses 30% less plastic to Sobeys stores across Canada. The bags for the grocer’s needs across Canada will be produced in Atlantic Canada through a new contract with Inteplast of New Brunswick. The Nova Scotia rollout started with a select group of stores in northern Nova Scotia including all four locations in Pictou County, home of the Sobeys head office. As part of the rollout, Sobeys is also encouraging customers to adopt the use of reusable bags to support Sobeys’ commitment to the environment and sustainability.Source: ngnews.ca
US: Kroger eyes rapid rollout for Ocado
The Kroger Co.'s recently hatched partnership with British e-commerce company Ocado will provide flexibility for the retailer to adjust how it fulfills online shopping orders depending upon consumer demand, company officials said in a conference call discussing quarterly earnings. Kroger earlier this year announced an exclusive U.S. partnership with Ocado, which will build large, automated warehouse facilities for the Cincinnati-based chain similar to the ones it operates in the U.K. CEO Rodney McMullen said officials were already at work identifying the first three sites for such facilities in the U.S., although a timetable for their arrival remains undetermined. “We’re going to open those facilities as fast as we can,” McMullen said. “Obviously, there is a certain amount of time it takes to construct them and for Ocado to build it out. There’s plenty of pressure on Ocado and us and get it open as quick as we can.”Source: winsightgrocerybusiness.com
Amazon officially launches Hub delivery lockers
Amazon has officially launched its Hub apartment delivery lockers, enabling residents to access packages from a range of senders. The Hub was initially launched last year, but Amazon has now decided to announce the product officially and begin rolling the service out across the US. The Hub lockers are similar to Amazon Lockers that are present at a number of retail sites, except these lockers are located in apartment buildings. Recipients receive a code on their smartphone, indicating that their parcel has arrived, allowing them to open the locker door. However, the key difference is that parcels are accepted from any sender or carrier. This could help Amazon to stand out from rival collection lockers. There is also 24-hour support for the service.Source: retailanalysis.igd.com